E3 2023 Loses the Big 3, with Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo All Backing Out of the Once Major Event

Is E3 still a thing? The once massive event where all the gaming industry gathered might have gone out without a bang, if this report is to be believed.

A new IGN report says E3 2023 lost the so-called Big 3 companies, the titans of the gaming industry, in a move that’s not entirely unexpected.

E3 2023 was supposed to be, finally, a comeback to the good old days of physical conferences. The conference is scheduled between June 13 and 16, the first physical event since COVID-19 debuted, but, at this pace, few will actually attend it.

Sony backing out of E3 2023 is likely, since the company skipped the last major event, E3 2019. Nintendo, for the past few years, has decided to share all major news via Nintendo Direct video presentations. Since the event happens a month after The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom launch, their presence at E3 2023 would have probably been minimal.

And lastly, we have Microsoft, who, according to The Verge, did say they’ll have a showcase this summer but did not specifically say E3 2023. 

As TheVerge also reports, since E3 started struggling, a downfall coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic, most publishers pivoted either to holding their own events or participating in smaller ones like The Game Awards and Summer Game Fest, both hosted by industry veteran Geoff Keighley.

Will E3 2023 still take place? We hope so, for old times sake but, considering E3 2022 was canceled abruptly, nothing is certain. At this pace, the fantastic E3 2021 could be the last event of this kind we see.

Also read: 7 Underrated Indie Games on Steam

*E3 2011 image via Patsun